Turn on Your Fat Burners with These One-Dumbbell Moves for a Tighter Core

When it comes to strength training, the best way to get the most bang for your buck in terms of calorie-torching, metabolism-revving potential is to think big—big, total-body movements, that is. Beyond building head-to-toe strength and definition, the main benefit of this is that you'll cut the length of your sweat session in half (which is great when you’re pressed for time).

This particular workout uses three moves and one dumbbell to hit all your major muscle groups—a definite plus whether you’re training in a packed gym or in your living room. And it gives a little extra (yet subtle) attention to your core, which means you can also cut out those crunches you always feel the need to throw in at the end of your workout. (Torch fat, get fit, and look great with Women's Health's All in 18 DVD!)

There are two different ways you can complete this circuit. Option one: Choose a slightly lighter weight (try a 10-pounder to start) and aim to get through the moves and the rounds as quickly as possible. That will get your heart rate up and focus a little more on increasing the cardiovascular challenge of the workout—which translates to a higher calorie burn, while also stoking your body’s metabolism. Option two: Choose the heaviest weight that allows you to complete each exercise with proper form—you want to be struggling to bang out that final rep of every exercise. (Note: Especially the first few times you try this workout, it can help if you have a few different dumbbells at your disposal; that way, you can swap them in and out to find the best size for each move.) This approach emphasizes building strength; and while the pace here is a little slower—you want to keep the reps controlled, and give yourself that break to recover at the end of each round—this will help increase lean muscle mass and torch body fat over time.

You can’t go wrong with either approach, so mix it up depending on how you’re feeling that day. Same goes for when and why you use this workout: It can be a finisher that squeezes even more out of a great sweat session; or a quick circuit when you’re short on time; or, it can be your go-to when you’re just not in the mood to remember a long, complicated routine or the gym is super crowded and you just want to get in and get out. No matter how you mix it up, you’ll still get a totally effective total-body workout every time.

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